Legend of Korra: Reflections
by TempestDash
Summary: A few vignettes occurring immediately after the end of Legend of Korra Book 4. No overarching plot, just characters taking the next steps in their lives after saving the world again. (Written in celebration of Korrasami being canon.)


**Asami**:

The green fields stretch out to a horizon impossibly far, dotted with trees that shouldn't exist in the same biome together but nonetheless are flourishing under a purple sky.

A vacation. _Impossible._

I just can't believe I'm really here. It feels like I haven't been able to breathe easily in years.

Five years ago I was a lonely girl in a large manor, living in the shadow of my brilliant father. Then there was Mako, and a hope for someone to not be lonely with. Then there were Equalists, and my father who betrayed my trust for them. Then there was Team Avatar who welcomed me like the family I should have always had. Then Mako lied to me. Betrayed again.

Hope, with Future Industry. Betrayal, from Varrick. Hope, betrayal, hope, betrayal. Now…

Now, I'm in the Spirit World. With Korra.

Is this the hope part or the betrayal? I hold my breath.

Korra nudges me with her shoulder and smiles so broadly she outshines the sun. Or whatever it is that provides light here.

"Cheer up!" she says with a laugh. "Vacation, remember? Chunmei will take care of anything at Future Industries." She pauses and raises an eyebrow. "You trust her not to turn everything over to Varrick, right?"

I laugh. "There's no risk of that," I say. "I had it incorporated into the laws of the company three years ago that neither Varrick nor Zhu Li can ever have any controlling power." I shake my head. "No, I'm more worried about Raiko's plans for expanding Republic City past the existing boundaries. There's a lot to do to fix the damage Kuvira did and I'm worried the quick fixes I made to get power restored won't hold up under the increased load of a thousand more buildings."

Korra stares at me. "Asami, how long do you think we'll be gone? We've _both_ got responsibilities to get back to. I was thinking like, a week or two." Her lopsided grin returns. "Or are we running away together?"

She jokes about it. I'm losing my mind, and she's joking about it.

I reach out and hold her hand gently. Her grin slowly fades and she begins to blush. I'm not sure if I'm relieved or terrified that her confidence is so easily shaken.

"Is… is that what you want?" she asks me. "To do?"

I look at her seriously. I want to feel like my life isn't being pulled out from under my legs every few weeks. But that's not her fault. None of it has been her fault. Even when she ran to find herself, leaving me… without. It wasn't like she knew.

Or maybe she did. And she's just as scared as I am.

"Do you?" I ask.

"I…" she trails off looking terrified. Her face is bright red. I'm not sure I've ever seen a human look so bright. Maybe it's the Spirit World. Korra did say we could influence our surroundings, even our own body.

She looks up and away suddenly and puts a hand to her chin. "Tea! Uh, yes, tea… right now… is what I'd like." She nods definitively. Then she squeezes my hand and glances my way. "Would you like some?"

I smile despite myself. I don't need answers right now. I just need this. Korra is happy and awkward and adorable... and that's enough to warm my heart too.

For now.

***** ( LoK ) *****

**Mako:**

I look at the woman across the desk from me evenly, giving her my best Unamused-Mako-Stare. It doesn't seem to work. It never seems to work on anyone except for petty criminals. It didn't even work on Prince Wu.

"Well, did she give you any indication when she was coming back?" I say.

Chunmei, Asami's deputy at Future Industries, smiled kindly at me, but I didn't get the feeling she was happy. "All I know is that she left on vacation with the Avatar."

I sighed, again. "I know she's with Korra, they both told me… as they were leaving Varrick's wedding! I didn't really have time to get details. I was hoping you knew more."

"I know a lot more," she says smugly. "But not when they're coming back."

"Well, did she leave any messages regarding my family?" asked Mako. "They're all still staying in her manor."

"One might think that was a reason for leaving," says Chunmei.

I can't believe I've never met her before this week. Apparently she'd been stalking around Future Industries for years now. I would have remembered someone this annoying.

"Yes, well, we're getting ready to move back to Ba Sing Se," I explain. "And I wanted to make sure everything was still in order to use an airship since the trains are still a mess after the Kuvira-bot thrashed the station."

"All active duty airships are currently supplying the United Forces in their stabilization effort to integrate the former Earth Empire forces." She still wears that wan smile.

"Is there… anyone else I could talk to, by any chance?" I ask.

"Funny," she says. Yes. It isn't.

"What about Sato Six?" I say. "It shouldn't be requisitioned for military work."

"The flagship is currently preparing for the transportation of Prince Wu back to Ba Sing Se," says Chunmei.

I smack my forehead. "I know, my family is travelling with him."

"Well, you should have said so from the start," says Chunmei. She opens one of the drawers of the desk in front of her and pulls out a sheet of paper. "If you'll have your family fill out this form listing all the items and people travelling, we'll have them loaded on departure day."

I take the paper. I could burn it in my hand to make my point, but I doubt this woman would even falter in her smile. "And you don't know if Asami will be back before we leave?"

Chunmei folds her hands on the desk. "I can tell you that when Ms. Sato chose to leave she had only one thing on her mind and it wasn't your family."

I frown. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Her smile widens. "Please be sure to return all bill of lading papers by the sixteenth to make sure everything is loaded in time."

"The sixteenth is _today_," I say.

"Then you better be quick about it."

I hate this person. What was Asami thinking leaving her in charge?

***** ( LoK ) *****

**Lin:**

I'm far too old to be standing here again. The name changes, the people change, the desires change, but I'm always here. Time after time, standing in a office too large, speaking to the authority about the safety of my city.

_My_ city. What a crock.

"President Raiko, with all due respect, you can't just hope for the looting to stop," I say, tiredly. Everything feels tired these days.

"I'm not hoping, I'm expecting you to do something about it. You're chief of police," says Raiko. "Do your job and keep order until we can get the power back to the eastern side of the city."

"I am doing my job but where, exactly, am I supposed to put these people? In jail? Chain them up like a press gang?" I slam my palms into Raiko's desk. "These are your people and they can't even feed themselves. They're stealing to _survive_."

"This is a phase that we must pass through to evolve into the next era of Republic City," says Raiko like he's giving a press conference. "Once the infrastructure is there we will grow past these ills and be a united people again."

"Or we won't," I snap. "This city has seen hell three times in five years! How much more will they endure? We need sympathy, not rules mongering."

"That is a shocking position from you, Lin," says Raiko. He stands now and walks towards the windows overlooking the plaza in front of city hall. "How many times have we stood here arguing the merits of the firm hand of the law?"

"Far, far too many," I say. It's true, but the city has never been like this under his watch. "And despite hundreds of disagreements, I'm still standing here. That must mean you think I have something to say worth listening to. So listen to this: the city is wounded and it may not recover unless we care for those displaced by the war. We need shelters and programs to incent people back into business. I'll gladly organize my police to protect the shelters and administer a jobs initiative, but I can't arrest every person trying to keep their family from starving!"

Raiko turns and glares at me. "What is the point of a police if you are not going to uphold the law? What gives you the right to tell me how to be the leader of this city? The expansion project is _supposed_ to provide for those who were affected by the battle with Kuvira, we _are_ setting up camps and build projects. I need you to maintain the order of what is left of the old city before it rots from the inside out! If people aren't migrating to the new projects then it's their own fault."

"It is not their fault that they want to go back to their homes!" I shout.

"It is if it means they starve!" he says. "The people and businesses will return when they feel it is safe, and they'll only feel safe if we maintain order."

I fold my arms and shake my head. "Order," I say. "Have I heard enough of that word yet? From Kuvira and now you."

Raiko points a finger at me, trying to look threatening. Hah.

"Don't compare me to that dictator," he says. Right.

"I'm through here," I say. I can't keep up this fight. My heart is not in it anymore. I turn and head for the door.

"We're not through!" shouts Raiko.

I am.

I'm surprised to find Mako in the lobby. A little less surprised when I notice Prince Wu talking to one of Raiko's cabinet. Probably taking notes on how to build his own Republic City in Ba Sing Se.

"Mako," I say, trying to keep the frustration out of my voice. "Would you like to be Chief of Police?"

His eyes widen significantly and he seems frozen in place.

"Easy kid, I'm not serious," I say.

"Oh, uh, right." He looks around, still a little shaken. "Yeah, I didn't think Raiko liked me that much."

"You're probably right," I say. "So what's next for you?"

"I'm helping my family back to Ba Sing Se," says Mako. "I may choose to stay. Prince Wu would like me to stay on to advise him on his 'Great Freedomer' tour. I've advised him the name is terrible but apparently he wants more than that."

"Leaving your home?" I ask. It's not really a bad idea, the more I think of it.

"Not much of it remains," says Mako. "Bolin and I haven't really had a stable place in years, and finding out our family is still alive has really changed our perspective on things. It might not be a bad idea to try something new."

I nod. "That's been on a lot of people's minds lately, which is why I'm worried about the eastern part of the city."

"The looting," says Mako. Sharp kid. He probably wouldn't have made a bad chief, but there's no way he'll ever make it here. Not under Raiko anyway.

"What about you?"

I look down at him. That's the big question, isn't it? What next?

"I don't know," I say. I think of the Avatar. "Suddenly running off with my lady friend doesn't seem like such a bad idea after all."

Mako looks strangely at me. "What lady friend?"

Poor guy. He doesn't even have a clue.

"Nevermind," I say. I think, though, I do have an idea of what I want to do. And it's not sticking around here.

I put my hand on Mako's shoulder. "Stay safe, kid."

He smiles that easy-going smile of his. "Thanks, Chief."

***** ( LoK ) *****

**Korra:**

It's different, being with her without having something to fight. I expected it to be different but wasn't sure how. Normally we'd talk over a search, or training, or an escape, or on our way to beat up some bad guys. It was natural for us to be working on a problem or be under pressure.

Not that there isn't any pressure here.

"It's fine, Korra," she says. She's smiling now. I was worried before, she looked so pre-occupied. Now she seems much more relaxed.

"He's normally here," I explain. 'He' is Iroh, the great-uncle of the Fire Lord and Commander Iroh's namesake. I thought I'd introduce him to Asami, but he doesn't seem to be around today. "I guess something else is going on."

"It's okay," she says again. "I'm fine with it being just the two of us." She looks so sincere, my heart beats fast again.

"Here," I say as I offer her a cup of jasmine tea. While Iroh was a no-show, I still found the tea kettle in the usual spot. "I'm sure I don't do it as good as Iroh, but I don't think it's half bad."

Asami takes the cup and sips it daintily. Her eyes close gently and she savors the taste. "It's delicious," she says with a breath. Then she slowly turns the cup around in her hands and slowly looks down to study it. "If your mind can affect the world around us, I wonder if it matters how you make it at all. Maybe all you have to do is want it to taste good."

"Could be," I say. "I'm still not an expert in the spirits."

I watch as her eyes sharpen, her focus ever more intense on the small cup of tea in her hand. "If that were true, you could just walk into the Spirit World, wish yourself up gallons of great tea, then cart it out again without spending a fraction of effort or materials." She blinks suddenly and looks up at me. "It can't be that easy."

"It wouldn't be very balanced," I point out.

Her fingers rise to her chin and play delicately across her jaw. "There must be an experiment we can run to find out."

People have always made a big deal about me being the Avatar, about being able to bend the four elements and even the spirit. Even I used to band it about thinking it made me so special. It took several long years and terrible failures to make me realize how wrong I was to think that way.

But I was born the Avatar, and had become comfortable with three of the elements before I was ten. What would be impossible for others was second nature for me. I had talent, and the backing of many, many lives to support me.

What Asami does is far more incredible.

Her brilliance and beauty are equally hard earned and demanding of dedication. She sharpened her mind over her life and became a power that rivals my own and she did it without any bending abilities at all. I'm a one in a billion collision of chance and genetics. Asami could have been anyone, and yet she finds a way to outshine me.

"I could build satomobiles faster and better than anything," Asami says, still lost in the idea of being able to use the Spirit World to manufacture. "What does it take to make something in the spirit world?"

I smile. "Training, and probably a great deal of cooperation with whatever spirits are going to let you take from their area."

"Ah, I knew there was a catch," says Asami with a finger held slightly up. "Convincing spirits. Kuvira was coming to conquer Republic City and you couldn't even convince the spirits living there to put up a defense. What hope do I have?"

I thought about the times I'd asked the Spirits for help… and the times they came to me instead. "They can be fickle."

"Better off doing things the traditional way, then," says Asami. She smiles and leans back on the grass. "Wouldn't want to ruin the peace you've brokered."

I lie beside her. "Not much brokering went on, like I said, I'm not much of an expert on spirits yet." I sigh. "Even after everything I've been though there is still so much more to learn."

Asami turns on her side, propping her head on her hand and looks at me. "That's life," she says. "Ever learning."

Her other hand lays delicately on the grass between us. I reach down and slide my fingers between hers, holding her hand gently. The charge I feel as our skin touches is distractingly pleasant. We've held hands so much recently, but I look forward to every opportunity.

It was never like this with Mako.

"What have you learned?" I ask, keeping my gaze on our clasped hands.

Asami pulls our hands up to hold them closer to her gaze. I'm forced to look up at her face and she looks…

My breath catches.

"I can't wait for permission anymore in my personal life," she says softly. "I waited too long with my father, but at least I got to tell him before he…" she trails off, her eyes watering slightly.

She swallows and her eyes turn down. "If you had gone missing again or… worse, after the battle with Kuvira, without getting a chance to tell you all the things I've been thinking over the last three years… it would have destroyed me." Now she's trembling, and I can feel it in her hand.

"Hey," I say quickly. I bring my hand around and put it on her shoulder, then gently stroking her arm. She's such a powerful person, seeing her like this is scary to me. I don't want to ever see her like this. "I'm here, you can tell me. It's not too late."

She looks back up at me, but it doesn't seemed to have calmed her at all. She makes a weak smile all the same. "I used to think, holding that pen in my hand all those times, that getting the wrong reply would be the most crushing thing." She shakes her head. "But it's not. Its the things that go unsaid that hurt worse."

I gently pull her towards me. Releasing her fingers, I slip my arm under her torso and press her against me in a hug. She wraps her arms around me tightly and her cheek lays against mine. She is still shaking.

"Then say them, silly," I whisper into her ear. "You never have to worry about what you say to me. Even if I say the wrong thing at first, I learn quickly enough." I smile, though she can't see.

"I'll never mean to hurt you.," I continue to say as she remains quiet. I turn my head down slightly so I'm nestled slightly against her neck. Her flawless skin is tantalizingly close to my lips. "You're everything to me."

Asami gasps quietly, then she is pushing hard against me and I have no choice but to let her go as she moves us slightly apart. Her eyes are tearing up and she looks angry.

Angry?

"Wha-" I start but don't get to finish.

"You… jerk!" she shouts. I have no idea what is going on. "Don't say so casually what I'm struggling so hard to say out loud!"

I blink. She doesn't seem really all that angry, now that I look at her…

Wait. What did I say, again?

"What? That you're important to me?" I ask.

Asami stands up and puts her hands on her hips. "Korra…" she grumbles. She has a frown but I'm not sure it's real. Her cheeks are turning red, though.

I stand up and smile at her. If this is all she was worried about she needs to stop. "You've got to know this, you're, like, the only person that ever seemed to understand me."

"Stop speaking," Asami groans. She is studying her boots now, apparently.

"Come on," I say anyway. "There's nobody I have more fun with. Why wouldn't I care?"

"You are ruining everything," she says, waving a finger in my general direction since she still hasn't looked up.

"Well, isn't that what you wanted to say?" I ask, with a shrug. "If I'm wrong, what am I to you?"

She finally looks up, wide-eyed, but staring straight at me. She looks slightly disheveled, though it's surely an illusion since she's always impeccably beautiful. A few words shouldn't change that.

She takes a step forward towards me, closing almost all of the gap she'd put between us. "You," she says. Then she steps even closer and we are touching. "Are," she says softer.

Then she throws her arms around my neck and tackles me to the ground. The soft grass and soil means it hardly hurts but is a surprise. I open my mouth to protest…

And then she kisses me. My brain stammers and stops. All I can think of is how much better this is than holding hands.

Like a wave crashing and receding, the kiss is suddenly over but my brain still hasn't recovered. Asami is propped up over me, her hair falling around us like a curtain, her gaze at me so tender.

"My whole world," she whispers. "And I think I love you."

"Oh," I say beneath a whisper. I smile again. "Yeah, me too."

Asami rolls her eyes but they sparkle, and her lips are curled in joy. I reach up a hand and caress her cheek before sliding it back behind her neck.

"My turn," I say impishly before pulling her closer for another kiss.

***** ( LoK ) *****

**Iroh**:

I turn quickly away from the scene in the spirit world before me. One doesn't want to be considered anymore of a lecherous old man than one already is.

I take one step and pause, then turn. He is still there.

"Hey, let them have their privacy," I say.

The old airbender turns and looks at me, tears in his eyes. He sniffles. "I think it's all going to work out now." He slowly walks over to follow me.

I chuckle. "So optimistic, Aang, after all this time."

Aang nudges me. "And you aren't? You've played much longer games than I have."

"I have indeed," I say. "But I recognize there is no 'ever after', and even joy will have have its bouts of grief. It's how we know how recognize happiness when it comes to us."

"I suppose," says Aang. "I just wanted the next Avatar to have it easier than I did."

"You could have gone to her when she asked for help," I point out. "The Spirit World remembers all of us." I motion towards the innumerable hazy shadows lined up in Aang's wake. "Even all of you now that you are untethered from the Avatar."

Aang nods. "You were the one who advised me not to." He sighs. "And you were right. And Toph was right, too. We can't keep saving our children. They need to grow on their own. The world is united in a way it has never been before. It's only right that we don't burden Korra with our histories."

I pat him on the back. "It's not all a burden."

Aang smiles at me. "No, but it's easy to get the wrong idea. Even I messed up countless times and Roku was there to guide me."

I shrug. "You are not alone, there are legions of people who failed to follow Roku's advice. Learning how to follow advice is part of growing up."

"Even at our age?" he says.

"Especially at our age."

He stops and looks at me with a sly expression. I'm sure I'm about to be pranked.

"Good," he says with a nod. Then he waves his arms up and then away as the landscape around us begins to shift. "Because there's someone wandering around in here who I think you need to talk to then."

The shifting scene settles to show a small wood with a path through it and an old man with a very distinguishing scar across his eye padding peacefully through. It's been ages since I've seen him but I'd recognize him in an instant.

Aang waggles his eyebrows and then sweeps quickly away before the old man can see.

Hah. "Old man." Looks who's talking.

I smile and approach the newcomer. "Hello, Zuko."

Zuko looks up, startled and then his eyes widen. "U-uncle," he says in awe. He stumbles slightly, then starts running towards me, his strength unwavering in his age.

But as he takes each step closer, the years seem to melt off of him. His hair turning darker, his skin tightening on his face, even his regal robes clothes fading away until he the young boy I remember, being named Fire Lord.

He hugs me tightly.

"My boy," I say. The son I knew longer and better than any other."I am proud of you."

"I missed you," he says, and it's like no time has passed at all. He eventually steps away and rubs at his eyes. "Have you seen it all? Have you been watching?"

I smile widely. Oh, I have never had a single regret with you, my son. To see you shine so much brighter than my brother is a never ending pleasant dream.

"Proudly," I say. Then I put my arm around his shoulder. "But I'd love to hear you tell me. Let's take a walk. The Spirit World is fast and full of adventure, and we have a lot of catching up to do."

Zuko's smile is as bright I as remember. "We do."

Author's Notes: I adore Legend of Korra as quite possibly the most perfect show I've ever seen. Seeing it come to an end was both thrilling and heartbreaking. For all the network troubles this show had, the story never compromised, never pandered, and delivered something special that I hope is remembered for all time.

I am generally loathe to try to contribute fanfic to a show so very special to me and that concludes in such a satisfying way - a rule I made up long ago when I first watched the truly amazing "El-Hazard: The Magnificent World" anime. But with Korrasami being revealed as intentional, and acknowledged as such by the creators and showrunners, I felt that there was just a bit more than should have been said.

But I'm a meandering writer, so there's a bit of other things in here too. I may add more chapters to this in the future as the need arises, but this is a nice, low-pressure entry into the Legend of Korra world.


End file.
